The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 268: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE MYSTBRIES OF THE COURT. tables wese covered with immense joints end dishes of vegetables: the knives and forks were all chained to the tables; the beer was drunk out of the commonest brown muge—for no publican would trust his pewter pots withm tho walls of thet place. The atmosphere was of the sickliest description—bot, fetid, and nauseating—made up of the breaths of many persons, the odours of the damp rage which wrapped their forms, the steam ef the greasy viands, and the strong smell of the vogatables. But what hideous objects were the beings who were thas banquetting! The blind, the alt, and the maimed—the paralyzed and the eonsamptive—as well as the hale, lusty, and strong—the sturdy beggar who obtains charity by eoercive insolence, and the whming one who elicits it by his piteous tale—the one whe for twenty years bas always hed a wife and five small children perishivg at home—the wo- man who every day for the last dozen years hae had « husband lying dead and no money to dary him—the girl of sixteen who ever cince she was ten has told the same tale of having only just come out of the hospital and got no home nor fathes.or mother—that great hulking fellow m a ragged seaman’s garb, whoee daily narrative of shipwreck and loss of all he , hag won for him five shillings in the course of a few hours’ wandering—the sanetimonious-looking, calculating vagrant, whose diurnal reckoning is that from eleven to fiye he can traverse sixty streets and in every street pick up at least a penny, so thas his daily income is likewise five shillings—the elderly waman dressed in widow's weeds, who evary day for the last Gve-and-twenty years has just lost an excellent husband and been thrown ont of a once happy home—the ingenious fellow who in the wintertime is a starved-out gardener, and in the aummer-time a factary operative suffering from the badness of the times,—all these, and other vaticties of imposture and mendicant roguory, were fully represented at this congress of joyously On quitting the sosne which we have just de- scribed, the canstable conducted the two officers to the large tap-room of a public-house situated m the neighbourhood of a saloon where theatrical re- presentations, singing, and dancing take place. Previously to entering this tap-room, the police- man informed Lord Charles Meredith and Oaptain Stanley that every individual whom they woald see théro was a noted thief-—and that there would mot be one preasnt who had not figured in the police-courte—many at the sesgions—some at the Old Bailey—and all more or jges often upon the treadmill. With this information the place was entered: a few knowing winks were bestowed u the police-constabdie; but apart from these famili signs of recognition, little attention was paid to the visitors. The fsequenters of that place were accustomed to behold “swelis,” as they deno- mizated them, drop im to see a littie of London life—or, on the other hand, to search after some thief who had exercised his manipulating skill upon them. All the varied and manifold impressions whieh villany and evime, in their different grades and degrees, can stamp upom the human counte- nanse, might be discerned in that room ;—and, heavens! what a etady for the phrenologist ! Wherefore go to Newgate to inspect the plaster aD Or 259 a a ce) easte of the countenances of defunct criminals, when there are these haunts in London where the faces of shoals of living evil-doers can be studied, and with all the more fearful accuracy—with all the more frightfully real intensity, inasmuch as the worst and darkest passions which are known to the human soul can be then observed working upon animated features and in their most hideous Vitality. At the numerous tables im this room the com- pany were seated,—all of them smoking, and all drmking too—but the liquors were varied according to tastes and pecuniary resources: so that passing through those grades which were represerited by the daring burglar—the bold thief—the cunning larcenist —the pitifal area-eneak —or the mi- serable padding-stealer,—a corresponding gamut might be specified in the form of steaming punch— tumblers of hot spirits-and-water—quarterns of gin—pote of ale—and pints of porter. In this delectable place Lord Oharles Meredith and Captain Stanley remained for about half-an-bour,—at the expiration of which they took their departure, still accompanied by the police-offlcer. Three or four other dens of depravity wore visited; and it was now past midnight: but as yet not the clight- est sign was discerned of the objeete of their search. They did not of course think it of the slightest use to visit the house in which the Burker and the Scotts had been. wont to live, nor to take the slightest trouble in watching the premises of the Smedleys: for there could be little doubt that the Burker and Bill Scott had kept out of the way at the timo they must have known the trial was goming on at Liverpool, so as to be on their guard in case of a result perilous to their own personal safety. And now, too, that the intelligencé of this result had arrived in London, it was all the more certain that the ruffian and his guilty acoomplice . would have taken the best possibile utions to elude the search which was sure to be instituted after thom. Captain Stanley and Lord Charles now held a consultation with the police-constable: for a certain idea had atruck the first-ementioned gentleman ; and he thus expressed himself :— “Thanks to your assistance, constable, we have teceived the initiative into fhe various phases which the haunts of crime, vico, poverty, and de- bauchery exhibit. But it strikes me there must be places which such villains as those of whom we are in search, would specially seek under exist- ing circumstances, and whence tie very first glimpse of a police-officer’s uniform would scare therm away. Now, are not these likewise places into which it may be possibly sought to inveigle those well-dressed persons who might chance to be in the neighbour- hood ?”” “ Yes—there are such places,” replied the con- stable: * but i¢ would be next to madhess for you to seek to penetrate into them. You would risk your life: but even if you escaped with that, you might reckon with certainty upon being robbed and ill-treated.” * Nevertheless,” rejoined Oaptain Stanley, “ only show me such 8 place as we have been speaking of, and I will risk everything |” “ And I assuredly am not the man to flinch from such danger,” said Lord Charles Moredith. “ But there is one thing to be thought of. If it be poss ee a oe OR Oe oe ee ww OO Oe ee oe CE COLL (C DOO CS (GO)